Huawei smartphone shipments jump; revenue soars

DanStrumpf

SHENZHEN, China--Huawei Technologies Co. said revenue from its smartphone and gadgets business rose by more than a third during the first half of the year, as the Chinese telecommunications giant reported a big increase in smartphone sales.

Huawei said it shipped 73.01 million smartphones in the first six months of 2017, an increase of 21% from the same period last year. The company said it occupied a 9.8% share of the global smartphone market, placing it in third place, behind rivals Samsung Electronics Co. of Korea and Apple Inc.

Revenue at Huawei's consumer business rose 36.2% to 105.4 billion yuan ($15.6 billion) during the year's first half. The Shenzhen-based company didn't report figures for net income. Since Huawei isn't publicly traded, it reports only selective financial metrics.

The company attributed the sales boost to higher shipments of its midrange and high-end smartphones. Earlier this year, Huawei unveiled a new flagship phone, the P10, which featured improvements to a front and rear camera.

Huawei is the world's largest vendor of telecommunications equipment, along with Sweden's Ericsson AB. In recent years Huawei has invested heavily in its smartphone business, especially in the high-end segment, in a bid to challenge Apple and Samsung's dominance.

It said revenue for the entire corporation--which includes its equipment business and an enterprise business, in addition to its consumer line--rose 15% to 283.1 billion yuan ($42 billion) during the first half of the year. The company reported an operating margin of 11%.

Huawei said it plans to increase its network of retail stores to 56,000 world-wide by the end of the year, up from 35,000 in May 2016.

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